This book was very much my shit! As someone who was raised on American Girls (books and dolls!), it was a wonderful trip down memory lane, and full of nostalgia. Big thanks to netgalley and MacMillan for an advanced copy to read and review. Dolls of Our Lives is out TOMORROW!

Mary Mahoney and Allison Horrocks are historians who met in grad school and bonded over their shared love of American Girl Dolls. They started a podcast, Dolls Our Lives, which admittedly I have not listened to but am going to start :) They dig into Pleasant Company and the American Girl franchise in a way that I really enjoyed - it was historical but also with a critical eye to the shortcomings. They say that when you love something you want it to be the best version possible, and that was very clear here.

Reading this book really took me back. I remembered getting those catalougs and spending hours going through them with friends. I remember reading and sharing the books. And perhaps some of my most treasured memories are going to Madison with my mom and childhood friends to volunteer at the American Girl Doll Sale (where returned, excess inventory and slightly damaged items were sold at a discount) which meant we could shop early! I would save my babysitting money all year and just wander the aisles in awe. And looking back, I treasure those memories even more.

American Girl and Pleasant Company are of course worthy of plenty of criticism - the cost! centering Addy and her stories in the trauma of being a slave! to name just two - and I appreciated how Mary and Allison approached it. The book was a wonderful way to reminicse about something that was very important in my childhood.

Will post this on goodreads, retail sites and my bookstagram @scottonreads

As a girl who grew up in the 90's I was all about American Girl, so I knew I needed to read this deep dive of the brand. Dolls of Our Lives is structured with six chapters, reminiscent of the six books assigned to each character ("Meet", "Learns a Lesson", "Surprise", "Happy Birthday", "Saves the Day", "Changes"). This structure made sense at times, and at some times it felt like the authors shoehorned topics in, even when it wasn't the best fit.

For a nostalgia factor, this book had what I needed. When they mentioned poring over the American Girl catalog and swooning over Samantha Parkington's cape, yes same. I loved the deep dive into the American Girl magazine, which I read religiously, and some of the history of the company and the founder, Pleasant Rowland. The book also makes some strong points about how the series encouraged girls to learn about history and see themselves as heroes, while not being afraid to point out the areas where the books may have failed us (Felicity's books refer to household servant Rose, not identifying her for who she was as an enslaved person, and bringing that to the attention of the reader) or discussing how the dolls themselves were not easily accessible to everyone due to their high price.

This book lost me a little bit with the authors themselves, I think they are used to sharing their own experiences due to their podcast (which admittedly, I have not listened to) but I found those sections dragged for me. I just didn't care about every detail of their trip to Williamsburg and I found their constant adoration of Molly to be redundant (and confounding, as a self-proclaimed Felicity who would rank Molly as maybe 3rd?). A few too many quippy pop culture references for me, but enjoyed this book generally for all of the memories it evoked.

As a huge fan of the Dolls of Our Lives podcast, I have been highly anticipating this book for months. Mary and Allison take a deep dive into the history of American Girl, from the dolls to the magazine, to Colonial Williamsburg, to the creator of the brand, Pleasant Rowland. A perfect mix of informative and hilarious, I highly recommend this book to anyone who grew up loving American Girl!

It had been a while since I thought about American Girl, or the role it played in my life, until I saw this book was being published. I’m so glad I had the opportunity to read it, rediscover my love for the brand, and find people who shared a deep connection to it like me. I loved learning the history of Pleasant Rowland’s founding of the Pleasant Company, the roots of the original dolls, books, and other American Girl merch.

I found Allison and Mary’s voices throughout the book to be informative (they are historians, this is a given) while not being boring. There were times where the reflections upon the different dolls and their stories felt repetitive, but I understand there were points that were being made. I also had deep appreciation for their admitted privilege and how they included the stories of other women with backgrounds different from theirs. Their encouragement for white women like themselves to include anti-racist work as a part of their continuing American Girl education was excellent.

I overall found the book a little slow at times but an overall great and nostalgic read.

Thanks to Feiwel & Friends for my copy of Dolls of Our Lives by Mary Mahoney and Allison Horrocks.

I didn't know about the podcast Dolls of Our Lives, but as soon as I saw this book I knew I needed to read it. Like most women in their late 30s, I loved my American Girl doll and I think my love of historical fiction started with the American Girl doll books. Reading this brought back such nostalgia and I've loved chatting with friends about our American Girl experiences.

My big takeaway from this book is there is such a community and love for American Girl dolls, books and more. I enjoyed learning more about the founding and early history of the dolls and company. This book was a mix of social history and anthropology with references and anecdotes from the two authors' experiences.

I received Molly for Christmas in 1994 and loved the authors' stories and experiences of getting their dolls and how they became friends and shared their love of American Girl. I knew there was going to be some criticism of the lack of diversity and historical representation, but the later parts of the book seemed to focus too much on that aspect for me. I felt like they kept finding different ways to say the same thing.

Overall I enjoyed this book and thinking back to my American Girl experience.

This book is so much fun! Mahoney does such a great job marrying American Girl, history, and pop culture for a fun, exciting dive into what this franchise has meant to so many.

I don't think I am the target audience for this book as I am the mother of a daughter who read these books, had the American Dolls, and loved all things American Girl; including going to the American Girl store.

The book was well-researched having talked to Pleasant Rowland, creator of the American Dolls and books company, Pleasant Company, taken a trip to Old Williamsburg that inspired the creator, and covered every aspect of the dolls, books, magazines, and every part of this beloved doll company.

For me, it felt like a "woke" analysis of the books not having "properly" covered the correct history and include enough to cover all aspects of the doll world to match all aspects of our country today. Trying to force today's political beliefs on what was once dolls created to give girls a look into American history for ages 5-9, just seems to take away from the original intent. I quickly grew weary of the comparison's to 1990's music, TV, movies, and Monica Lewinsky. To me, it felt like they were pushing their Democrat Socialist (as they declared themselves in the book) agenda as activists trying to influence young girls today. I did not feel the warm fuzzies I had hoped for reading this book.

My thanks to Net Galley, Feiwel & Friends, and Macmillian Audio for an advanced copy of this e-book and audiobook, narrated by the authors.

I was 100% an American Girl doll girlie as a kid. I memorized the catalog, obsessively re-read the books & dreamed of the day I could get my own doll (Kirsten, obviously because she was blonde, from Minnesota s& practically had my name). So it’s obvious that I loved this book. But it’s not for everyone. This is only for those diehards AG fans who want to know about the creator & discuss exactly why each girl had to save the day in their book 5.

i have been a lifelong american girl fan, reading every single book (often with my mom as a kid, just like the authors), loving the stories, poring over the catalogues, squealing in delight when i finally unwrapped my very own doll for christmas... then finding myself SO disappointed when it wasn't molly, but samantha. (why i wanted the great depression era doll instead of the edwardian era swanky doll is beyond me... but alas)

this book is SUCH a fun dive into the world of the pleasant company and all things american girl-- why we loved them as kids, how and why they captured our spirits (and also where they failed to hit the marks, too), how they came to be, what our favorite dolls mean about us now, and so much more -- all written with such flawless voice, full of humor and perfectly timed jokes and references, beautifully paced, and excellently executed.

i truly LOVED this book and instantly preordered myself a copy because i want to have it forever!

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishers for this Advanced Readers Copy of Dolls of Our Lives by Mary Mahoney!

A adored the American Girl books as a kid. I never had one of the dolls, but I borrowed the books from the library every chance I got. I read them over and over. My mom even subscribed to the magazine for a bit, just so I could get the paper dolls. I found all of their stories fascinating. So imagine my excitement when this book was announced! I felt like I would finally get to bond across the page with other women who were shaped by the same stories. And while that was true to an extent, I also felt like an outsider. This book felt to me like it had a subtle political agenda, and that is the quickest way to turn me off. I don't care which side of the aisle said agenda falls on. If a book or movie or show proclaims itself to be about a particular thing and then finds a way to make said topic preach for them, I'm immediately bothered. That's what happened here. I appreciate what the authors conveyed, but the preachiness mixed with the overly conversational tone of the storytelling left me cold.

SO so fun. I was a big American girl doll girlie (Gen Z, not millennial) and loved my dolls. I was a Felicity stan. I liked that this book looked at what made us all fall in love with American Girl, while also pointing out where American Girl fell flat and f***ed up.

I ate this up and will now begin listening to the podcast.

If you were an American Girl Doll girlie, I highly recommend.

This was a very fun and nostalgic way to revisit the American Girls series that was such a big part of my childhood in the 90s! I have listened to Mary and Allison's podcast before, so I enjoyed the familiar tone, but I did wonder if readers who were not familiar with them or their podcast would be able to relate to the anecdotes. My favorite parts were the history of the brand and how each character was developed, as well as how they contextualized those characters not only in their historical time periods but also in the years (80s and 90s) in which they were released.

Last year, my friend and I revisited our childhoods by taking our American Girl dolls to the American Girl restaurant. It was a joyous experience and we saw a couple other groups of adults (without children) doing the same. There's a magic (grip) that American Girl has on those who grew up with it and refuses to let go.

I was instantly drawn to this book. The topic and the iconic cover, of course I can tell what doll that is from a fraction of their head. Allison and Mary walk us through the early beginnings of American Girl and its founder, Pleasant Rowland. They also talk extensively about the very first dolls, Samantha, Molly, Kirsten, and Addy. There's a little bit of Josefina, but not a lot. The other historical dolls are only given a brief mention, if at all (justice for Ivy). I think this is important to note this because I kind of went into this book thinking it was going to cover more of the company's history. The focus seems more about the first few dolls, the important connection of learning & play Rowland wanted for young girls, and talking through moral issues surrounding the stories told. These conversations were particularly interesting and would have liked to hear more/dive a little deeper. For example, the Saves the Day books are stories where the historical girl overcomes a challenge and saves the day. But the question is does the girl have to save the day? What does that imply for young girls and should children have to save the day? Interesting stuff!

Allison and Mary have a podcast called Dolls of Our Lives, which this book is named after. They've delved into the other historical dolls' stories while reading the books. The book is a continuation of the conversations had on their podcast and I think it relies a little bit on the reader having already listened to some of the episodes. While I haven't done this, I think the book is still understandable and enjoyable, but I wonder if that is why there isn't as much depth to some of the conversations.

I'm unsure if this is because I read this as an e-book or for another reason, but this book would've benefitted a lot from having photographs of the dolls, toys, and locations visited. There weren't any in my version, but it would've been cool to have those visuals.

Overall, this was a wonderful journey that made me happy. American Girl always has a place in my heart.

My daughter was obsessed with American Girl Dolls. This history reads like the podcast (only expanded) that the authors host. If you or your kids love these dolls, you'll probably find something you didn't know here.

This was a really fun and interesting deep dive into the world and wonderment of American Girl Dolls, a staple of my own early aughts childhood. Duo Mary Mahoney and Allison Horrocks take a fun and sentimental look at the history and culture around the brand and the dolls and people who make it so special.

Despite my only connection to American Girl Dolls being the catalog that arrived in the mail, I really enjoyed this book. The writing style is fun and conversational, while still treating weighty subjects with careful consideration. I am intrigued by the idea of American Girl as a lifestyle brand! This book is a great example of being able to love something and still carefully critique it.

The authors have a podcast by the same name that I haven't listened to yet, but now that I've read the book I definitely want to tune in. I enjoyed the book overall. I learned a lot about the history of the company and I liked the interviews with people who helped create the dolls. As a kid who read the magazines and books religiously, I was impressed that they included those aspects of the company beyond the dolls. Plus, it was nice that they also interviewed regular doll lovers for a more well rounded perspective outside their own personal experiences. I related to a lot of what they said. However, the book was a slow read and I'm not sure why. A few things felt repetitive. It was very much for a millennial/gen-x audience with occasional current pop culture references that probably won't date well. I feel like you had to be a fan of American Girl dolls in order to enjoy this book, though you don't have to have listened to their podcast to enjoy it.

I absolutely will be recommending this book for purchase at our library! I think it would be relatable for our college students and timely for the nostalgic doll revival currently happening. It will be an excellent addition to our pop reading collection.

I wanted to love Dolls of our Lives! I am a little older than the women who wrote this and didn’t know anyone who could afford these expensive dolls but we all read the books so I was pretty familiar with the dolls. The catalogue was something I rushed to the mailbox for and read over and over again like a magazine.

The topic was fun and the research was solid but I don’t know why they tried so hard to be funny. “Paraphrasing” pop songs and restaurant slogans (???) was an odd, jarring choice to make so many times in the middle of sections that required actual research or an interview with someone. The made up hashtags (so many hashtags) were distracting, unnecessary, and instantly dated the book.

I cringed through so many pages I wished I could have written into American Girl Magazine and asked how to deal with secondhand embarrassment.

Yes, it should be a fun, somewhat lighthearted book given the subject matter but boy did that element seem forced. To be clear, there is nothing cringy about their love of the dolls and their work around that but how they presented it. It was written by two authors and they seemed to switch off chapters or sections which was a little confusing and unclear at times. One would be referring to herself in detail and the other author in a more abstract way and then a few pages later it seemed like they switched who was writing by how they wrote about their experiences and that of the other other writer. It made the book feel uneven. I’m not sure why they didn’t just split the chapters or write in a uniform way.

As an aside, I was puzzled and disturbed by a casual reference to throwing a JonBenét Ramsey-themed birthday party. Why that is a party someone would throw much less admit to in print is truly beyond me. For a book that seemed to pride itself on being inclusive and holding stories, dolls, and history accountable, including that you threw a child murder victim-themed party was surprising and grotesque.